Would you buy this?
- Thread starter Jalfrezi
- Start date
Id buy it for £3000
If it's for a weekend fun car
The most you can Loose is the £3000
With the depreciation value of the car anyway its worth it for a couple of years
Also it's worth a bit in parts and if it conks out in two years you've had your fun with it
If it's for a weekend fun car
The most you can Loose is the £3000
With the depreciation value of the car anyway its worth it for a couple of years
Also it's worth a bit in parts and if it conks out in two years you've had your fun with it
North West Surrey
Doesn't seem sill expensive for what it is. After all an 03 plate is 13 years old, so 130K is only about average.
If it drove well, had some history and I could do a deal to either reflect the short MOT or have a new one put on it I wouldn't be put off.
Hope it works out!
FWIW there is a trader who has been listing a Z4C on A/T for months with 121K recorded miles for £7,500. (I did make an enquiry about it 3 months ago, and the fact it is still around may be a bit of an attitude problem to be fair)!
Compared to the one you are looking at less than half the price for the sake of 3 years older and another 12K miles looks pretty reasonable - plus from my (albeit limited) experience an M54 engine is cheaper to maintain than an N52.
If it drove well, had some history and I could do a deal to either reflect the short MOT or have a new one put on it I wouldn't be put off.
Hope it works out!
FWIW there is a trader who has been listing a Z4C on A/T for months with 121K recorded miles for £7,500. (I did make an enquiry about it 3 months ago, and the fact it is still around may be a bit of an attitude problem to be fair)!
Compared to the one you are looking at less than half the price for the sake of 3 years older and another 12K miles looks pretty reasonable - plus from my (albeit limited) experience an M54 engine is cheaper to maintain than an N52.
Looks OK. It maybe the dealer is holding off on the MOT as a bargaining point and not wanting to get it done if the car is going to sit on the forecourt for a few weeks, but it definitely isn't cheap enough to buy without it being done first. It's had advisories for brake pipe corrosion and a recent fail on suspension bushings which is normal at that age/mileage but is a sign of what you can realistically expect. A fail on similar service items can soon add up to a lot of money so the MOT would be a deal breaker for me.
south yorkshire
Fresh MOT and a few hundred pounds off and it's a bargain. Lot of car for very little money.
Went back to take a 2nd look, and noticed a couple of things:
Good stuff:
1) Has electric (memory) & heated seats, in pretty good condition
2) Has cup holders, and CD autochanger, also has speakers behind the seats, so I think it is a Carver system
3) Only two previous owners, last one for ten years, quite a lot of history/receipts
So, all in all pretty good so far, the dealer will also stick a new MoT on it.
Not so good:
1) Front bumper isn't quite aligned, but the rest of the panels look good so not too concerned
2) A couple of very small dings in the bodywork, again for the price no problem
3) SatNav DVD is 2002 version, so I guess it needs an update
4) Had a flat battery, but started fine with a booster
5) Had a misfire & the CEL was on, the dealer is confident this is just coil packs and will sort it
6) Had a bit of a rattle from the engine, like a knackered pulley bearing (maybe the misfire would cause this?)
7) A bit of surface rust on the top of the front chassis leg in the engine bay. Looks straight, and not repaired accident damage. but a bit odd
So, bit if a dilemma, they dealer wants a deposit before they address the misfire & get it MoT'd, and ignoring these issues I'd like to buy the car. However, I still haven't test drove it. Nervous of losing a deposit if the car drives badly after the repairs.
Tempted to walk away, but it could be a good buy.
Good stuff:
1) Has electric (memory) & heated seats, in pretty good condition
2) Has cup holders, and CD autochanger, also has speakers behind the seats, so I think it is a Carver system
3) Only two previous owners, last one for ten years, quite a lot of history/receipts
So, all in all pretty good so far, the dealer will also stick a new MoT on it.
Not so good:
1) Front bumper isn't quite aligned, but the rest of the panels look good so not too concerned
2) A couple of very small dings in the bodywork, again for the price no problem
3) SatNav DVD is 2002 version, so I guess it needs an update
4) Had a flat battery, but started fine with a booster
5) Had a misfire & the CEL was on, the dealer is confident this is just coil packs and will sort it
6) Had a bit of a rattle from the engine, like a knackered pulley bearing (maybe the misfire would cause this?)
7) A bit of surface rust on the top of the front chassis leg in the engine bay. Looks straight, and not repaired accident damage. but a bit odd
So, bit if a dilemma, they dealer wants a deposit before they address the misfire & get it MoT'd, and ignoring these issues I'd like to buy the car. However, I still haven't test drove it. Nervous of losing a deposit if the car drives badly after the repairs.
Tempted to walk away, but it could be a good buy.
The dealer should be putting all that right first, getting it MOT'd and then reflecting that in the asking price. Sounds like there are too many worries to be committing yourself by handing over a deposit. There will be other Zeds out there, I'd start looking elsewhere if I were you.
Bollocks to the deposit!
As Marlon says if the dealer is going to stand any chance of selling the car he needs to sort the misfire, clear the warning light and put an MOT on it.
Just tell him to give you a call when he get's the car ready for sale.
There are loads of Zeds out there so don't worry about walking away.
As Marlon says if the dealer is going to stand any chance of selling the car he needs to sort the misfire, clear the warning light and put an MOT on it.
Just tell him to give you a call when he get's the car ready for sale.
There are loads of Zeds out there so don't worry about walking away.
It beggars belief that garages don't actually fix faulty cars until they have a buyer. 
My pet hate if it's not 100% they can shove it .
I realise why they do it , I just find it annoying .
When I was looking I did put a deposit down on a car having the abs sorted .I was messed about so got my deposit back and walked away.
My pet hate if it's not 100% they can shove it .
I realise why they do it , I just find it annoying .
When I was looking I did put a deposit down on a car having the abs sorted .I was messed about so got my deposit back and walked away.
Jalfrezi said:
Last owner 10 years I would take as a positive , the miles shouldn't worry if its a weekender & the price is right when you take delivery
Your list of 1-7 faults /
1 :wink: I would say a majority of Z4s that have had bumper off for a repaint will never regain the proper lines so unless accident damage is obvious I wouldn't worry too much , it will be more of a annoyance than anything & can be sorted with new clips + experience
Only 5 & 6 would concern me & I wouldn't be offering any deposit until you are satisfied those defects have been put right
If you are patient I would say £4k should land a decent 100kish 3.0se so ask yourself if the extra £ you will save is worth the extra 30k ?
No way will a dealer fix faults and mot ahead of time. Let's say he spends £500 doing it then then price has to go up to £4K+.
Next potential buyer just finds other things like tyres getting worn and he has to negotiate more off.
At this end of the market they strike a deal and fix what you find. If you find too much they walk away.
If you don't like it as is with a few fixes you walk away
Different story at the high end of the market where it will be covered by 100 Pom t inspections, mot, service and warranty. There they end up fixing paint errors, etc. If you spot them.
Next potential buyer just finds other things like tyres getting worn and he has to negotiate more off.
At this end of the market they strike a deal and fix what you find. If you find too much they walk away.
If you don't like it as is with a few fixes you walk away
Different story at the high end of the market where it will be covered by 100 Pom t inspections, mot, service and warranty. There they end up fixing paint errors, etc. If you spot them.
Well I have just put a deposit down on this. This misfire was sorted, new MoT and the price dropped. Drives well and has lots of goodies Inc Xenon's.
The dealer has a couple of minor jobs to address, but all being well I shall be the proud owner of a Zed ☺
I see a few weekends of cleaning and polishing ahead. Mixed with poor excuses to drive places for no real reason.
The dealer has a couple of minor jobs to address, but all being well I shall be the proud owner of a Zed ☺
I see a few weekends of cleaning and polishing ahead. Mixed with poor excuses to drive places for no real reason.